Category Archives: atonement

How to Grow Grasshopper Legs

27 Monday Mar 2023

Posted by in atonement, General, Jesus Christ, Motivation, Portuguese, Success

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These days few things seem to surprise us. With a Youtube society, we are used to seeing the outlandishly improbable happen. We can see cats dancing, watch sculpture art being created out of cheese blocks, and amazing trick shots from basketballs thrown off of waterfalls into a hoop 200 feet below.

However, a few months ago, I watched something that I had a hard time believing, even though I watched it live. My mind couldn’t quite process what was happening.

I watched some 6’1″ little hobbit look-a-like named Mac McClung, who had only played in 2 NBA games total, win the Slam dunk contest.

He competed against some of the worlds best athletes and won. It wasn’t even particularly close. He blew them out of the water. How was that even possible? The first time I saw him grab a ball, I thought it was a joke, or some sort of construed, elaborate ploy to get the attention of the judges by having the ball boy run towards the basket. Then the magic happened.

Judging by the reactions of the other participants, announcers, fans, and the other NBA players on the court, I wasn’t the only one that was shocked. They all looked at him like he had just walked out of a spaceship.

In Utah, Mac McClung saves the NBA Dunk Contest

Not only did this little guy look just like Merriodoc Brandybuck from the Lord of the Rings movies (which could explain his abnormal abilities somewhat because of his consumption of the magic draughts of water he received from Treebeard the Ent, and his connection to Galadriel, the Queen of the Elves of Lothlorien) but he also apparently possesses the jumping ability of a human grasshopper. It was a lot of fun to watch.

Martin Betancourt (@martbetancourt1) / Twitter

He had become way bigger, he had become way more than what he was just the day before. To be honest, I don’t think anyone really knew who he even was. It was a miracle. What a fun story.

Maybe the funnest part of the story is how applicable it is to all of us. The same principle that powered his legs into video game super-springs can be used to treat any obstacle we face in our lives. Probably not in the same way this worked for Mac McClung, but in our own unique circumstances.

The idea and principle is this…

We can be much more than what we think we can be.

We can acomplish and achieve much more than we think we can accomplish and achieve….and,

We can overcome any and all obstacles and challenges.

We just need to tap into a special power that is offerred freely to all of us.

Just a few short weeks ago, our daughter Olivia left to serve a mission in Brazil. Before she left, she spoke in our sacrament meeting about this exact principle. It had significant meaning to her.

She shared that the Atonement of Jesus Christ not only has the power to save or redeem us from sin and physical death, but it also has the power to enable us to overcome any obstacle we face. The Atonement of Jesus Christ has both a redeeming power, and an enabling power. Elder Bednar spoke about this particular subject in 2002.

So what does this look like in real life? What does it mean for us to use the enabling power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ?

Alma taught the people of Gideon about the enabling power jointly with the redeeming power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ in the Book of Mormon…

“And he shall go forth, suffering pains and aafflictions and btemptations of every kind; and this that the word might be fulfilled which saith he will ctake upon him the pains and the sicknesses of his people.

And he will take upon him adeath, that he may bloose the bands of death which bind his people; and he will take upon him their infirmities, that his bowels may be filled with mercy, according to the flesh, that he may know according to the flesh how to csuccor his people according to their infirmities.” -Alma 7:11, 12

Afflictions, temptations, pains, sicknesses, and infirmities are not sins. They are not relieved through the repentence process. These are directly addressed as conditions subject to relief and succor of the Savior of the world through his Atonement. He has already felt, experienced, and overcome all of these conditions along with all our sins, in order to be perfectly empathetic to our needs. He knows how to help us.

Moroni also shared what he was taught by the Lord directly about weaknesses.

“And if men come unto me I will show unto them their aweakness. I bgive unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my cgrace is sufficient for all men that dhumble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make eweak things become strong unto them.” -Ether 12:27

That sounds a lot like enabling power to me. And, Jesus actually gave us the recipe on how to access his enabling power. All we have to do to grow our own set of spirutual grasshopper legs to compete in the Dunk Contest is to humble ourselves, and have faith in him.

Olivia did a great job highlighting that principle in her talk, and sharing her experiences in the months leading up to her decision to go on a mission.

If anyone has ever evidenced the principle of the enabling power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, it would be Olivia. Her story is as dramatic, as incredible, and as amazing as a Hobbit winning the Dunk contest. She is a quiet, reserved, and humble young woman who loves her chill time, family, and a good movie.

But, in just a few short weeks, she has already blossomed into someone even more incredible. She is now a person willing to leave everything that is comfortable, everything that is familiar and safe, to step out into the vast unknown of a mission experience. And, this experience will happen thousands of miles away.

In this process, she is managing to influence all of us, her Mom and Dad, her amazing younger sister, and brother, and even her older brother away in school.

She is now in week 3 in the missionary training center in São Paulo, Brazil, learning how to be a missionary. She’s learning Portuguese, learning a new culture, learning how to budget time, and spending 16 hours a day to reach those goals. At times it has been a struggle, and the struggle will likely remain. But, we have already seen how she has been stretched and grown to become much more than she was, even a few short weeks ago. She is tapping into the enabling power of the Atonement of Jesus Christ, and growing spitual grasshopper legs.

We are proud of her and her decision, we grateful for the example she is to all of us, and grateful that we get to share her expericence right along with her. She is now running towards the hoop and preparing for the 360 behind the back, double clutch reverse dunk that will blow our minds!

Te amamos Olivia!

The Real Gift of Christmas

25 Saturday Dec 2021

Posted by in Angels, atonement, Christmas, Divinity, General

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During Christmas season, we think a lot about gifts. We think of the gifts we want to give to others and admire the generous gifts we receive. However, if we slow down from the hectic scramble to check off the items on our Christmas lists, we can ponder and benefit greatly from understanding the reason we celebrate with gifts during this time of year.

Sometimes, recognizing the greatness of a gift in the very moment it is given is difficult to do. It requires proper perspective and understanding. Unfortunately, I am not known for for being an expert in either maintaining the proper perspective, or in possessing anything that resembles great understanding. However, as I often do, I have a story that demonstrates my lack of perspective and understanding, and I’m glad to share it.

When I was growing up in Payson, Utah, the entire gamut of youth sports programs was comprised of just two options. We had summertime city baseball, and wintertime Junior Jazz basketball. Not quite the same as the full time year-round club teams kids now have for every sport. Needless to say, as kids, we looked forward to those seasons (mostly for the snow cones we would get IF won our baseball games).

In my first year of playing this Junior Jazz basketball, I was 8 years old. I barely knew how to dribble or shoot, and hardly understood the game itself. However, Junior Jazz did have its perks. Each year, they would have some members of the Utah Jazz organization put on a little basketball camp for all the kids in town to kick off the season.

In this particular year, 1985, the players that were sent down as guests to help run the camp in the thriving metropolis of Payson were the new guys. Some short, spindly, second year player from Spokane, Washington, and the new rookie kid from Luisiana.

It’s likely that the veteran Jazz players used the camp as a cruel hazing initiation for the new guys, or teach them patience. It was certainly needed to run a basketball camp full of 8 year-old kids in Payson. I am fairly certain it was not to bolster up a developmental league or to identify the next shining star, or future prospect for the NBA.

All I remember from that day, was the short spindly player that came could dribble like a madman. He went over some dribbling drills for us to do, which, when he demonstrated, looked more like the roadrunner’s feet from the cartoon. None of us could do them. When we tried, the gym was almost instantaneously a madhouse full of kids chasing the basketballs that had bounced of our heels, feet, knees, and butts. I remember him demonstrating another ball-handling drill while laying on his back and scissoring his legs front to back while moving the ball between them, all while talking to us. He looked more like a magician than a basketball player. I just remember thinking and wondering how on earth a real human could even do that. He looked more like what you’d see on a video game.

The only thing I remember about the other guy was that he was super tall, and he could actually dunk.

After the camp, the two guys sat down and were signing pictures and handing them out to the kids. I remember my dad being adamant that I get that signed picture from each of them before we went home. I was just wanting to go home and eat my bowl of cereal that was my custom on Saturday mornings. I remember chatting with the tall guy very briefly as we walked down the hall on the way home. Whatever, no big deal.

Some memory huh? Just a normal day in the life of and 8 year-old boy in 1985 Payson, Utah. Nothing to see here.

Well, as it turns out, I still have those signed pictures that my Dad was so worried about (and thanks Mom for helping me keep them from the trash heap). The players just happened to be John Stockton and Karl Malone.

After thirty-five years, I can now look back at the events of that day with added perspective and understanding. Captain Crunch consumption should not have been my focus that morning. What an amazing day that was. What a gift. How often does a little kid in Payson get to go to a free basketball camp put on by two future hall of fame NBA players? Once in a lifetime, that’s when.

Sometimes, the magnitude of the gifts we receive takes time to sink in. But, as we look back, these gifts can grow in meaning for our lives. This happens to us all the time.

In order to fully understand the immensity of the gift we celebrate each Christmas, we need to better understand the nature of God Himself, and the nature of our Savior. Just as an additional thirty-five years of life added to my appreciation of a special basketball camp as a little boy, added knowledge and understanding of the true nature of God and his benevolent gift can add to our love and appreciation for Him.

This perspective, or lack thereof, is not a new challenge to overcome. One of the most pointed questions on this subject came from an angel to Nephi during his vision of the history of the world. In that vision, he saw Mother Mary and the birth of our Savior. During these scenes, the angel of the Lord asked Nephi this poignant, probing question. This question may be one we skip over a lot of times because of the way the meaning of the word has changed over the years. The question he asked Nephi was…

“ Knowest thou the condescension of God?” (1 Nephi 11:16)

To us, the word condescend isn’t necessarily a good one. Usually we associate this with people who talk down to others. But, in this particular case, it is the perfect word to describe Jesus’ pathway to his earthly experience. If we look at the 3rd definition of condescend in the dictionary, it says this…

“to put aside one’s dignity or superiority voluntarily and assume equality with one regarded as inferior:”

It feels like we are getting closer with that definition.

It is almost impossible to fully appreciate the immense distance between who, and where, Jesus Christ was in the moments before his birth, to who, and where he was in Bethlehem at his birth. They couldn’t be further apart. We need to fully appreciate how great Jesus was BEFORE he was born, and just how human he became, to better understand his condescencion.

Before the little baby Jesus was wrapped in swaddling clothes, He was the God of the Old Testament. He was the God that cleansed the earth through the flood. He was the God that led Moses and the Israelites out of Egypt. He was the God that parted the Red Sea, and sent down fire to engulf the soaked alter for Elijah in his fight against the priests of Baal. This baby Jesus was the mighty Jehovah, the Great I am. This little one in a simple manger was the Creator of the Universe and worlds without number.

Isaiah captured this concept best in his famous scripture we often hear around Christmas time, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given…” His prophetic writings then perfectly describe the divine destiny of that little baby as he continued, “and the government shall be upon his shoulder, and his name shall be called, Wonderful, Counselor, the Mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace.” (Isaiah 9:6)

The mighty Creator of the Universe chose to fulfill the Father’s plan, and pass through a veil to become that little baby in Mary’s arms. He gave up everything to be with us, and to learn like we would learn, and to face and overcome everything in much the same way we would be asked to do.

Jesus didn’t only sacrifice his perfect physical body in the garden of Gethsemane and on Calvary’s hill. He sacrificed all that he had BEFORE he was even born. By coming to earth as an innocent baby with a mortal mother, he left behind his position at the Father’s side. He gave up all his power, all his knowledge, and all that he had become, to join us on this humble earth. With his mortal birth, he was fulfilling the Father’s plan. By virtue of his mortal birth, he sacrificed all that he was before, and chose to descend below everything just for us.

That is the condescension of God. What a gift.

In section 93 of the Doctrine and Covenants, the Lord reveals more understanding about his nature, his growth, and his condescension. By teaching us more about his nature, he is teaching us about our nature, and our divine potential.

It is in this section that we learn when it was that Jesus received a fulness of the Father. His first 30 years were spent learning, growing, and becoming who he was meant to be. This was an example for all of us and our own individual paths of growth and learning.

At the baptism of Jesus, he fully became who he was meant to be.

“And I, John, saw that he received not of the fulness at the first, but received grace for grace; And he received not of the fulness at first, but continued from grace to grace, until he received a fulness..And I John, bear record, and lo, the heavens were opened, and the Holy Ghost descended upon him in the form of a dove, and sat upon him, and there came a voice out of heaven saying: This is my Beloved Son. And I, John, bear record that he received a fulness of the glory of the Father; and he received all power, both in heaven and on earth, and the glory of the Father was with him..” (Doctrine and Covenants 93:12-16)

The Lord then turns to teach us how this applies to us. He teaches us about who we are, and why it’s important to understand the nature of God. His entire life was the gift. We need to celebrate it all.

We should celebrate together the gift of his birth, his teachings, and ultimately in his atoning sacrifice. HIs life, in it’s entirety, is the greatest gift ever given because of what it makes possible for all of us. Because of him, we also have divine potential. We can receive the fulness of the Father all because of him.

“I give undo you these sayings that you may understand and know how to worship, and know what you worship, that you may come unto the Father in my name, and in due time receive of his fulness. For if you keep my commandments, you shall receive of his fulness, and be glorified in me as I am in the Father; therefore, I say unto you, you shall receive grace for grace.” (Doctrine and Covenants 93:19, 20)

This time of year we give and receive many gifts. Let’s take just a little more time to think about the most important gift of all. Jesus gave himself as a gift to all mankind in a garden in Gethsemane, and again upon a cross on on Calvary. But, before that pinnacle event in human history, he gave up everything to [con]descend into our world as little baby in Bethlehem, and became the greatest gift ever given.

The modern day apostles may have said it best when they declared…

“God be thanked for the matchless gift of His divine Son”.

The Much Anticipated, Long Awaited, Death of Death

09 Friday Aug 2019

Posted by in atonement, Death, Faith, General, Jesus Christ

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In the movie, Back to the Future II, the bully extraordinaire, Biff, received a gift from his time-traveling future self. This Future Biff gave Past Biff a sports almanac that spanned 50 years. This future sports almanac would eventually help Past Biff place huge wagers on every sports game for the next several years and amass a huge fortune. All because he knew the future.

He had cheated. He had all the information. He had the power of knowledge. All he had to do, was wager on the events because he knew the outcomes beforehand.

remember this scene?

biff-back-to-the-future

Wouldn’t that be nice? How would it be to know the outcome of future events?

In some ways it would spoil the fun of competition. But, what if the outcomes we knew were more meaningful than trivial sporting contests? What if we knew the results of the bigger world events? What if we already knew of the triggering events, or the outcomes of wars, or when an earthquake would hit, or a volcanic eruption, or other cataclysmic events? What if we knew the outcomes of our own difficult life decisions, or challenges? What if we knew the outcome of every scenario including the battle of life and death?

In a way, we do.

And, we don’t need a crazy future uncle Biff or his space-time-continuum-altering almanac. We can know the outcome of Good vs Evil, and Life vs. Death.

This week I was listening to a book by Tad Callister called The Infinite Atonement. It is excellent by the way. As I was listening, I was impressed by a poem that he quotes while describing Christ’s victory over death as a portion of his Atonement. It was written in the 1600’s by an English poet named John Donne.

John_Donne_by_Isaac_Oliver

John Donne (1572–1631)

Death be not proud, though some have called thee
Mighty and dreadfull, for, thou art not so,
For, those, whom thou think’st, thou dost overthrow,
Die not, poor death, nor yet canst thou kill me.
From rest and sleep, which but thy pictures be,
Much pleasure, then from thee, much more must flow,
And soonest our best men with thee do go,
Rest of their bones, and souls delivery.
Thou art slave to Fate, Chance, kings, and desperate men,
And dost with poison, war, and sickness dwell,
And poppy, or charms can make us sleep as well,
And better then thy stroke; why swell’st thou then?
One short sleep past, we wake eternally,
And death shall be no more; death, thou shalt die.

I loved the last phrase, “Death, thou shalt die.” I have never really thought of death in this way. Who would have imagined the irony that death was alive? Who would have imagined that death could die?  I had thought of death more as an event. I imagined it as something that we all will experience, something necessary, something that is inevitable, with no inherent goodness or badness.

The way it is phrased in this poem, however, explores Death almost as if it were a person, or an idea, or something that is actively trying to claim us. It is portrayed as if it is waging a battle against what would then be its alter ego, its competitor, it’s more wholesome nemesis…Life.

These days, we seem to love stories of superheroes. Maybe we could look at this proverbial battle between Life and Death as the next best superhero story.  “Death” would be like Lex Luthor, the Joker, Thanos, or the big Green Goblin Guy that steals all the super tech from Ironman, etc. “Life” would then be the Superhero that goes largely unnoticed, fights for the little guy, and restores peace and prosperity. Through a series of drastic events, Life would engage in an epic battle with Death, and eventually overcome and heroically bring the world back to normalcy. Life would be the conquering superhero that saves the world from utter chaos, pain and despair.

What if we took that superhero storyline and rephrased it just a little? We could even say that Life would be the hero that saves us from the “pains of Death“. Wow, where have I heard that before? Maybe if we added to the storyline one more time, the Superhero we are calling “Life” could have an introductory line, “I am the way, the truth, the life…” (John 14:6)

I guess that in a way, we are living in a world that has a real Superhero. We are all participants in the battle of Good and Evil, and of Life and Death. We also know how it will end.

Like Biff, we have a place where we can read about the battle and the eventual winner. Lets read a few words from the Divine Almanac of Human Events both past and future…the scriptures. This is our cheat sheet where we have access to inside information, and can read about the outcome of this continual war between the two titans- Life and Death.

“For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death.”
(1 Corinthians 15:22-26)

How have I missed this for so long? Just as the idea in Donne’s poem infers, Death is an enemy, it will be destroyed. It dies. Life will win.

Hosea also leaves little doubt as to the outcome of this epic battle…

“I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death: O death, I will be thy plagues; O grave, I will be thy destruction…” (Hosea 13:14)

We already know the outcome of the battle and the war. So what does it mean for us? What good does this information bring? Just as it benefitted Biff, we can use this knowledge to benefit us. Because of this, we can have complete and total confidence and faith that we all will live again. We all will. We can have complete and full confidence in being able to see, be with, and enjoy the company of all those who have passed on. Death will die, and Life will live.

Over the last few years in our community, and across the country, we have been too familiar with Death and its plague of painful devastation. It rears its ugly head way too early sometimes. When it happens to come abruptly, or unsuspectingly, it shakes us and our belief. How could it not? It is a surprise attack, an ambush. Death is something that we all think will happen after a full and complete and fulfilling life. When it comes early, it causes us to reexamine all the things we believe, or have believed, or been taught about that happens after we die. We are left with nothing but faith. Death quickly morphs from a future eventuality and screams forward and slams us with its sudden present reality.

As I thought more about this, I began to realize why death is such a difficult enemy to deal with. Although we will all pass through that door, Death is powerful and painful because of the sorrow caused by its separation. We love to be, and long to be with those we love. When we are apart from them, it hurts. Even more so when it comes unexpectedly and abruptly.

This is true with both physical and spiritual death. It hurts. We are separated from either where we want to be, with whom we want to be, or even how we want to be. Does it not also hurt when we ourselves, or a loved one make choices that can bring about spiritual death, or separation from the Spirit?

But, there is good news. We know who wins. We have the Almanac. It is abundantly clear. Death dies. Life lives. Both in physical and spiritual senses.

“Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;” (Hebrews 2:14-15)

In our Divine Almanac, we can also read about how some amazing people have stared directly into Death’s eyes, and overcome. It can inspire us to exercise patience in developing the faith necessary to do so in our own lives.

In order to face the end of your own life with peace and calm requires a sure understanding and a rock-solid faith. It requires a testimony hardened and engrained so permanently that it is impossible to extract even when Death unsheathes fear as his weapon of choice.

The sons of Helaman had it…

“Now they never had fought, yet they did not fear death; and they did think more upon the liberty of their fathers than they did upon their lives; yea, they had been taught by their mothers, that if they did not doubt, God would deliver them.” (Alma 56:47)

Joseph Smith also faced his fate with faithful confidence…

“I am going like a lamb to the slaughter, but I am as calm as a summer’s morning. I have a conscience void of an offense toward God and toward all men…” (from the Diary of Willard Richards)

In the Book of Mormon, the Anti-Nephi-Lehis laid prostrate down on the ground in prayer before an advancing vicious Lamanite army and willingly gave up their lives so as to not break a covenant they had made with God to never spill another’s blood again. Imagine the unshakable faith it would have taken to conquer the fear of that moment.

When we are trying our best, yet still suffer through difficulties and tragedies in our lives, we need to understand that we are in good company. We aren’t alone. This battle of life and death has touched almost all of us. We can be assured that our experiences with these events are acknowledged and recorded in the heavens above, and that our “labor is not in vain”.

“O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? But thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ. Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not vain in the Lord.”
-1 Corinthians 15:55-58

The sting of death is calmed by the Savior. He won. Life wins. Death dies. His Atonement eliminates the eternal sorrow of separation. He, the Savior, is the one who gives us peace.

“…He hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound…to comfort all that mourn…to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness…” (Isaiah 61:1-3)

“These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33)

“He will swallow up death in victory; and the Lord God will wipe away tears from off all faces…”(Isaiah 25:6)

hallelujah-he-is-risen-wayne-pascall

Because of our Ultimate Superhero, our Savior, we are able to overcome physical, and spiritual death. He won. He overcame. Life wins. Death dies. And he invites us to share in his victory with him by and through our obedience to his commandments, and following the precepts of his Gospel.

Because the Savior overcame all, we will all live forever.

Where we live forever, and with whom we live forever, is up to us.

Entropy

29 Tuesday Aug 2017

Posted by in Agency, atonement, Faith, General, Humility, Jesus Christ, Pride, Strength

≈ 1 Comment

Fat_Cartoon_Man

It can get really hot in Arizona. Especially in the summertime. Not really news to anyone, just a basic fact, but somehow living in this desert gives you a better appreciation for how draining this hot can be. In the Arizona summer, as we open a door to go outside, it can literally become indistinguishable from opening up the oven to take a nice up-close look at baking cookies. No sane person would ever consider actually living in an oven, even with delicious cookies. So, for good reason, not a lot of outdoor activities are done here in the months of June-September. There is a reason why summer golf in Phoenix is so cheap.

Because of this temperature challenge, my stay-in-shape training has taken a back seat. I had been on a pretty good regimen while training to get ready for some simple triathlons over this last year. It was nice, almost perfect all throughout the winter, and up until my last race in St. George, Utah last May. After that, it got hot. Really hot. Arizona hot. I remember texting a picture of the dashboard temperature gauge to Riley one afternoon when it read 126℉. I nearly suffered 2nd degree burns just by putting my hands on the steering wheel that afternoon.

IMG_8650

The problem with summers here, is that no matter what time of day or night, it feels like the inside of a toaster. “Why don’t you just swim in the pool during the summer?” you might ask. Well, that is a great idea right up until you jump in the pool, and instead of instant coolness, refreshment, and bliss, it feels like an overheated hot tub under a fast-food heat lamp. Instead of achieving solace from the scorching rays while floating through the water, it feels more like you are a piece of meat slow roasting in the crock pot. You don’t last too long swimming when the mist coming off the pool isn’t really mist, its more like steam arising from a pot of boiling water.

And that’s not all.

You may think, “Well, if you cant run or swim outside during the summer, maybe the bike would be better?”. “Maybe the wind blowing over you as you pick up speed would cool you down as you ride?” Yes, that would be a great idea, and, yes, there is a nice wind that is created, but it feels more like a industrial sized blowdryer set right at your face. So, needless to say doing any physical activity outside of scrambling from one air conditioned building to the next, is almost out of the question.

So, long story short, I took a bit of a break. The funny, not so funny part of that break, is that after the temperature “cooled” down to around 90℉ at 10:00 pm, and I started to try and train again, I noticed that because of my self-imposed break to wait out the summer fires of Hades, I had become out of shape. It was the consequence of inactivity.

Instead of running several miles and feeling great, I was lucky not to quit after just 1. It was almost like I had to start over. All the benefits of the months, and months of training had seemingly melted away just like an ice cube on Arizona asphalt. I felt like I had reverted all the way back to square one. I guess walking from Splash Mountain to Pirates of the Caribbean isn’t adequate triathlon training.

This has been a painful reminder that our fitness or “in-shapeness” really is something that is constantly changing, for better or worse. It never really is static. Just when we get comfortable, content, and happy with where, or how we are, we relax. And this little relaxation is when we start to slip. It requires constant, consistent, and repeated work to maintain ourselves with where we want to be. If you aren’t going forward, you’re going backward. And that is exactly what had happened with me.

As I was further contemplating my physical regression after just a few weeks, I realized that I was living out a vocabulary word that I had recently rediscovered in a Sunday School class. The word was “Entropy”.

This word is a shortened idea of a more sophisticated physics law known as the 2nd law of thermodynamics. I wont even pretend to be a physics guru, or attempt to explain the intricate details of closed and open systems, energy, or its predecessor the 1st law of thermodynamics. But, it has a simple definition. The one that fits the best in this case is….

“a process of degradation or running down or a trend to disorder”.

That is just a fancy way of saying that everything is constantly wearing down. Its kind of like rusting. Everything is becoming less orderly, and unless we put energy into reversing that natural process, it will take its toll, and we will digress, regress, and lose all the progress and order that we have achieved.

So, my “in-shapeness” had degraded, devolved, and definitely trended towards disorder. In even simpler more personal terms…

Unless I keep training to stay in shape, I become more out of shape.

Unless I put energy into improving, I get worse.

Unless I continue learning, I forget what I had learned.

The process is universal, and applies to all sorts of things. This concept may even be the most valid in a spiritual sense. This degradation can happen to each of us in our lives. There are times when we are in great spiritual shape, and we have been “training” hard, working on getting better every single day. During these times, we continuously work to build up endurance, feel strong, and healthy. Then, inevitably, there are the other times when we take some time off to rest a bit, and then, before we know it, we are feeling like are running around with a plastic bag over our heads.

King Benjamin knew all about this concept of spiritual entropy. He simply described it using different words. He understood that each of us needed to work continuously to become more like our Father in Heaven. It was something that doesn’t just happen naturally. In fact, it was the “natural” part that we had to fight. It is human nature to oppose God. It is human nature to only think of ourselves, and to drift constantly away from God, his plan, and his laws. It is human nature to be selfish, greedy, and secular. King Benjamin described this condition perfectly in the Book of Mosiah…

“For the natural man is an enemy to God, and has been from the fall of Adam, and will be, forever and ever, unless he yields to the enticings of the Holy Spirit, and putteth off the natural man and becometh a saint through the atonement of Christ the Lord, and becometh as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient, full of love, willing to submit to all things which the Lord seeth fit to inflict upon him, even as a child doth submit to his father.” -Mosiah 3:19

But, just as I needed to get back into shape by working constantly, continuously, and repeatedly, King Benjamin explains exactly how we can fight the natural man, or spiritual entropy and stay in spiritual shape. He specifically singled out several words or phrases that can act as our workout list.

First, he said we must “..yield to the enticings of the Holy Spirit…” This is tough in todays world. We need to listen. Not just hear. My wife has been trying to teach me this concept for 18 years. I must be a very natural man, because she still has to constantly remind me of this. Yielding means to allow the Spirit to work in us, to allow someone else to drive, to let the spirit guide us rather than depend on our own supposed knowledge. We don’t always have to be in charge, or know everything because, “His thoughts are higher than our thoughts” -Isaiah 55:9

Second, King Benjamin teaches that we need to become a “Saint”. Becoming a Saint is to be associated with, and bear upon ourselves the name of Jesus Christ. This entails, or necessitates, using the Atonement of Jesus Christ. It is only through his atonement that we can become something “unnatural” or improved. It is by utilizing his atonement that we become something better than we thought we could be. And, the only way that this is even possible, is to work on developing the character traits that King Benjamin lists in the same verse. These required traits are, “becoming as a child, submissive, meek, humble, patient”, and being “full of love”. -Mosiah 3:19

These traits do not occur naturally. They must be developed. They need to be practiced. Just like running a marathon, or swimming 2 miles in the ocean, or riding a bike for 6 hours straight. We are not born with these traits. We cant just decide to be an ironman on Monday and race in the Kona World Championships on Sunday. They must be learned. They must be developed. We all have the potential to do these things, or become these things, but we need to work at them constantly and continuously. We need to practice, and we need the atonement of Jesus Christ.

Each of us needs to fight this entropy all day, everyday. There is a perfect phrase used in the Doctrine and Covenants that teaches us the best way to start, and keep going in our own spiritual exercise regimen.

“Verily I say, men should be anxiously engaged in a good cause, and do many things of their own free will, and bring to pass much righteousness;” -Doctrine and Covenants 58:27

As we try our best to be anxiously engaged to do good around us, to be happy, to be kind, to look at people in a more loving, forgiving way, to look at life through a gospel lens, we will slowly be changing our character. We will be slowly getting in better spiritual shape. We will be fighting the “natural man”, and spiritual entropy. If we combine these efforts with a steady dose of the cleansing and enabling power of the Atonement of the Savior, we can be who we want to be, and stand on the highest podium at the end of our mortal race.

Nature’s Entropy

Our hearts and minds continually,
Are pulled by nature’s entropy,
Unfocused, dimmed, erroneously,
To earth, and not to Heav’n.

But, if we struggle faithfully,
And look up, kneeling, pleadingly,
And seek forgiveness constantly,
Our flaws can be forgiv’n.

And if we then walk steadily,
And try to live more righteously-
More loving, and more honestly,
A spark of Faith begins-

In Him, who suffered willfully,
So we can look up hopefully,
To see his hands spread willingly,
to bring us home again.

The Whole Need no Physician

16 Tuesday May 2017

Posted by in atonement, Failure, General, Honesty, Jesus Christ, Sports, Trials, Weakness

≈ 1 Comment

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“…Jesus…said unto them, They that be whole need not a physician, but they that are sick…for I am not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.”           -Mathew 9:12,13

Back when I was a kid, I loved to watch baseball. I loved to watch the best players in the world throw 100 mph fastballs, or hit 100 mph fastballs, or crank out 4 home runs in one game. Every once in a while, we even got to see an all out brawl because of a well placed pitch right between the batters shoulder blades in retaliation for some perceived slight an inning or two earlier. …Ahhh, the good ‘ole days….

One of the most entertaining players to watch was a guy named Bo Jackson. Now, Bo only played a few seasons, but was one of the best athletes to ever play. He was an All-Star outfielder for the Kansas City Royals, way before the Royals were cool. Or even remotely good. He also starred as a running back for the Oakland Raiders. He bounced back and forth between professional sports like it was no big deal. He was iconic. And, maybe the best part of all, he had his own cross training shoes that, quite possibly, could be the best shoes ever created in the 90’s.

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Bo was famous for his home runs….and his strikeouts. He looked a lot like Dwayne “the Roc” Johnson at the bat if you can imagine. Or like Disney’s Moana playing baseball. He was huge, ripped, shredded, swole, or buff as you might say. Even though he never lifted weights in his life.

He was a good hitter, but he did strike out more than average. He didn’t particularly like striking out, as you can imagine. It frustrated him. It tended to make him angry. We were able to deduce this fact because he would often, after striking out, break his bat over his knee, or his head, on his way back to the dugout. He had a little bit of a mean streak in him. But, his anger management issues, were fun to watch, because snapping a bat over your head, and making that piece of pine look more like a toothpick was totally awesome.

So what does Bo Jackson’s anger issues have anything to do with anything? Well, maybe nothing, but it came to mind this week as I read through a particular chapter in the Book of Mormon. Last Sunday, because of a new calling, I got to sit in a lesson in the Deacons quorum in my ward. The lesson was on the reality of all of us having real problems, and how we all have flaws, and we will make mistakes, and how we have to pick ourselves up and go to the Lord, and make ourselves better because of it. It was awesome.

The chapter that we talked about was 2 Nephi chapter 4. This is one of the best chapters ever.  In this chapter, Nephi talks about how even he, Nephi got down on himself because of his sins. This is the same guy that never complained about anything, the same guy that made a homemade bow, probably out of sharp rocks, animal sinew, and leftover crow feathers while in the wilderness. Only to then have to fashion his own arrows, even when everyone else, including his prophet father, Lehi, was complaining directly to the Lord about thier sufferings. This was the same Nephi that was willing to make a boat to cross an unfamiliar ocean simply on faith. This same, seemingly flawless Nephi, admits he had struggles with temptations, and sin. He was a normal guy after all!

He explains his thoughts in verses 17-19,

“O wretched man that I am! Yea, my heart sorroweth because of my flesh; my soul grieveth because of mine iniquities….I am encompassed about, because of the temptations and the sins which do so easily beset me. And when I desire to rejoice, my heart groaneth because of my sins…”

Don’t get me wrong, Nephi was one of the most faithful men to ever live on this earth.  But it is nice to know that he, just like us, wasn’t perfect. He had struggled to overcome sin. He quickly though, reminds himself, and us by proxy, that there is no reason to dwell on the struggles. And, that remembering the greatness of God, and His ability to lift us out of sin, is our real key to happiness.

He says in verses 20 and 21…

“My God hath been my support; he hath led me through mine afflictions in the wilderness; and he hath preserved me upon the waters of the great deep. He hath filled me with his love, even unto the consuming of my flesh”

He continues in verse 26…

“O then, if I have seen so great things…why should my heart weep and my soul linger in the valley of sorrow…?”

Then, and this is the new part that stood out to me yesterday for the first time, Nephi gives us this little glimpse into one of the things he may have struggled with. He explains in verse 27…

“And why should I yield to sin, because of my flesh? Yea, why should I give way to temptations, that the evil one have place in my heart to destroy my peace and afflict my soul? Why am I angry because of mine enemy?”

and again in verse 29…

“Do not anger again because of mine enemies…”

I think we have to look at Nephi’s life as a whole, and wonder how in the world he did it. He continued to be faithful through thick and thin, trial after trial, living on the edge of life threatening situations every single day. He maintained his faithfullness even when his older brothers, Laman and Lemuel, tried at every possible moment in time, to make his life completely miserable. They beat him, tied him up several times, mocked him, complained about him, demeaned him, and ultimately tried to kill him. Multiple times. Nephi and his family and others literally had to up and get out of dodge to avoid being  murdered by his own brothers. If anyone had the right or reason to be “angry” it would have been Nephi.

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So, do I think Nephi had anger management issues? No, I don’t. I don’t think he went all “Bo Jackson” and broke his nice steel bow over his knee after a missed shot at a giant 8
point buck somewhere in the wilderness. It just doesn’t fit. But, I do think he was subject to being a normal human, and having normal human responses to living continuously under the threat of being killed, beaten, mocked, and ridiculed. Some people, unfortunately in this world can relate to that.

And that is the beauty of the scriptures, and of the gospel. Its a real life thing. The stories and principles that we read about in the pages of the Book of Mormon apply to us. Even if the prophets in those stories have flaws and struggle. We all have flaws, and we all struggle. Thats kind of the point. If Nephi struggled with the temptation to be angry, given his circumstances, then its also ok if I struggle sometimes with the same thing.

We all have our things that we need to overcome. Nephi, in this same amazing chapter, finishes it off with his advise on how to recover from those sins, and temptations…

He teaches us in verse 34…

“O Lord, I have trusted in thee, and I will trust in thee forever. I will not put my trust in the arm of flesh”

Then finishes in verse 35..

“Yea, I know that God will give liberally to him that asketh. Yea, my God will give me, if I ask not amiss; therefore I will lift up my voice unto thee; yea, I will cry unto thee, my God, the rock of my righteousness. Behold, my voice shall forever ascend up unto thee, my rock and mine everlasting God. Amen.”

Nephi, no matter his temptations and sins, looked up to God, and trusted in him. Its as simple as that. Our struggles, our problems, are real. Its simply a part of life. And that’s ok. That is where the beauty of the gospel and the atonement of Christ takes over. Nephi showed us how he did it. He survived by handing everything over to the Lord.

We are all broken or “sick” in some way. Even those who may seem to have it all together, like Nephi. But, lucky for us, the Lord can fix anything. He can heal us no matter how sick we are. He is the great Physician. The more housecalls he makes in our behalf, the better we get to know him, love him, and really appreciate what he does to heal us. And when we allow ourselves to be healed by him, we are changed. And that is how the atonement really works. Maybe we can stop looking at our temptations and sins as weights, and see them more as oppurtunities to be healed by the Great Physician.

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A Reason for Suffering

27 Thursday Apr 2017

Posted by in atonement, Example, General, Patience, Strength

≈ 2 Comments

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All of us on earth go through hard times.  Each one of us has a gamut of difficulties that we go through.  Some are short lived, some are chronic, and some seem to be permanent.  All of them are hopefully teaching us a lesson, but there also happens to be the trials, struggles, difficulties, and pain that just won’t go away (or the continue to reappear) that we just can’t shake no matter what we try.  We plead with heavenly father to be free from them or to overcome them, but to no avail – they just linger and we wonder to ourselves why this must be, or why we as individuals are selected to suffer so much.  We may even agree to suffer through them but plead for a clear answer why.

Beyond the normal answers like 1) opposition provides us with joy, and 2) struggles bring us strength, there is something that I discovered a few weeks ago that I hadn’t realized before that helped me understand why some of these difficulties seem to never leave (and the Lord may never intend for them to leave) – even after the person suffering has likely learned plenty of great lessons about suffering and/or dealing with trials, exercised much patience, and even submitted fully to the Lord’s will.

Alma 17 is the beginning chapters outlining the missionary service of the sons of Mosiah to the Lamanites.  In verses 10-11 the Lord is speaking to Ammon and his party (on the eve of them splitting up to preach) and “visits them with his spirit” and tells them to “be comforted”.  Then the Lord gives Ammon some instruction that I think is fascinating.  He says: “ye shall be patient in long-suffering and afflictions, that ye may show forth good examples unto them in me, and I will make an instrument of thee in my hands unto the salvation of many souls”.

For the first time, I understood very clearly that there are people in the world just like Ammon, who are or have been instructed by the Lord to “be patient in long-suffering and afflictions” (some of which may not ever be schedule to subside), just so that I can see their good examples of righteousness while they are ‘in the furnace of affliction’.  This thought was a light bulb for me, and I began to think of the many people who I have seen deal with trials, hard times, struggles, and a multitude of outside circumstances that aren’t a direct result of poor choices and yet they seem to show forth their good examples of patience and long suffering over the years – and now I am even more inspired when I think that they agreed to this trial and are enduring it well, just so that I can be provided with their example and have my faith strengthened.  Unbelievable.

This thought also helped me read through the remaining stories of Ammon and his brethren in a different light.  For example; Alma 24, Alma 28, and Alma 30 all contained stories that could be directly tied to how one individual’s faith filled and kind actions (a.k.a patience in long-suffering during a hard time) is what caused the spirit and subsequent conversion of another to take place.

I also started to look at my own life and those around me, and I asked myself the question – are my trials teaching me something?  Maybe.  But if my trials or hardships are recurring or seemingly unending, does that mean I’m missing the point repeadetly?  Not necessarily.  It might just mean that the Lord trusts me and expects me to be patient, kind, and good all along the way so that other people may see my example and be inspired.  Thus, when we continue to look for the end of a particular struggle, we may be looking for something that will never ever come.  Talk about a lesson in patience in long-suffering.

Part of why the scriptures, and the Book of Mormon in particular resonate so strongly with us is that they are filled with stories about people who wrote about their daily and repeated struggles with hardship, and were able to keep the faith and inspire other people all along the way (which happens to inspire us many years later).  After all, isn’t that why the Lord places us in families, and wards, and neighborhoods? So that we can watch each other suffer, and be inspired by their examples?  I never thought of it that way, but I definitely have been inspired by them.

With that in mind, and the idea that other people’s struggles are in place (partly) for us to be inspired, there is another scripture passage that I would like to share.  It comes from Alma 53 where the people of Ammon were almost ready to break their covenant of peace (where they buried their weapons of war) in order to help the Nephite army.  Helaman convinces them not do that, and by not breaking their covenant, and by not joining the army, the record indicates that they (the non-fighters) were “compelled to behold their brethren wade through their afflictions, in their dangerous circumstances at this time”.

These uber-righteous, and faithful saints who just wanted to help their friends were left to watch these Nephites, who had already sacrificed so much on their behalf “wade through their afflictions” during this dangerous circumstance.  Imagine with me the mental pain and suffering that these great people endured just by watching their brethren suffer.  It is no wonder that their children were then inspired to join Helaman’s army.  I don’t know if Helaman knew that helping them to keep their covenant would cause greater suffering, which in turn would cause greater conviction and motivation in those who were watching – but that is how sacrifice works.

One of the blessings of the spirit is that we have the ability to “see things as they really are”.  And ‘things as they really are’ include a whole lot of suffering.  Every single day and every single week in your neighborhood and in mine there are people (old and young) who are in the absolute throws of suffering.  But you and I wouldn’t necessarily know it because maybe we don’t look for it, we misunderstand it for something else, or because of how well they are showing their patience in long-suffering – and they do it because they love the savior, and they trust him, and their faith is so strong.  I can promise that if you pay attention, the Lord will bless you with the eyes to see, and the heart to feel the unlimited love that he has for these faithful saints as they continue to come and worship him.  You will be inspired by them and their strength, and you will see their example “in him”.

The Lord Jesus Christ went in to the garden of Gethsemane and suffered unspeakable pains and anguish.  This left the rest of human history with the opportunity and charge to “behold [our brother] wade through [his] affliction, in [his] dangerous circumstances.  From this one event, and his perfect love and unselfish action during his most intense suffering we are inspired, and we feel love, and we feel gratitude.  Although his sacrifice satisfied all of the necessary elements (justice, sin, death, etc.) for salvation and for our path home – I imagine that Heavenly Father indicated to him at least once or twice that a large part of his mission here on earth was to “be patient in long-suffering and afflictions, that ye may show forth good examples unto them”.  He is the ultimate example of love and sacrifice – and he is the one who can accompany us during our hard times because he has felt them, and he will feel them, and he wants us to know him.

I hope that the next time we are suffering, stressed out, full of grief, or burdened by weights we feel are too heavy, we can look around and think of the people who are looking at us, who are watching us (they are watching), and who – through our faith filled actions – will see the savior and his love overcoming the trials.

Learn to Lose

05 Sunday Mar 2017

Posted by in atonement, Failure, General, Humility, Weakness

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Over the last few weeks, my four-year-old son has discovered the amazing sport of baseball.  He has a giant blue plastic bat, and a few oversize whiffle balls (if the neighbors have thrown some back over the wall).

Every day after I get home from work, he comes and asks to go out in the back yard and play “hit ball”. It does sound a bit like what Tarzan might call it, but, it is indeed baseball. He loves it. There is only one slight problem. He’s not used to, nor does he enjoy, losing.

It’s the same story in every aspect of his little guy’s mind. He always has to be first. He has to win, or he acts like someone is trying to pluck out his fingernails with a pair of pliers. He has to be the first one back in the house when we get back from a car ride anywhere. He has to be first back home after a bike ride. He has to be first to finish his cereal. He has to be first to buckle his seatbelt. Everything is a make shift competition. Unfortunately, this little quirk that seems to drive his every action, somehow does not apply to bedtime. He’s happy to drag his feet then.

So, we as a family have had to make a decision. Do we let him always win these little perceived competitions? Or do we deal with the dramatic weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth, of a four-year-old 2nd place finish? Seeing how he is child #4, and we as parents are now nearly beaten into submission, he tends to “win” so we can keep the peace, our hair, and our sanity.

But, I guess the game of baseball has given me another chance to teach him a valuable lesson….How to lose.

The first couple of days when he would get tagged out, he would get that super frowny cry-face that kids can get. He acted like you just stole his ice cream cone from his hand and ate it in front of him. He’d start to cry, whine and complain while skulking off into the shrubs to try and elicit pity and sympathy from everyone around him.

Its a hard lesson for a four-year-old. And sometimes, it can be a hard lesson for a 38 year-old.

Getting out is part of baseball. Striking out is part of baseball. Failing is part of baseball. In fact, getting a hit only 3 or 4 times out of 10 up to the plate is considered hugely successful! The earlier my little four-year-old can grasp and understand that, the better. The sooner that the rest of us old people can understand that life also works in much the same way, the better.

We are here on this earth to struggle. To lose. We aren’t here to win every time, get a trophy and go home to our Heavenly Father with nothing but blue 1st place ribbons draped around our necks. We aren’t here to return home to Heaven having never tasted anything bitter, never felt loss, heartache, disappointment, pain, anguish, anxiety, inadequacy, or discomfort.

In fact, its quite the opposite. We are here to experience exactly all of those things. We need to learn to lose.

When we are allowed to lose, struggle and fail, we increase the spectrum of feelings we have experienced. Only with the lowest lows, can we then be able to savor the experience of winning, overcoming, and succeeding in a much more meaningful way. How much better is that slow trot around the bases after a home run, when our previous 3 at bats were strikeouts?

When we struggle, or face a fight we just cant seem to win, sometimes we just need a new perspective. For me, the perfect pep talk comes from Moroni. When I feel knee deep in the middle of slump, or when I feel like I am 0 for my last 50 at bats, he provides the best reality check there is. He uses the Lord’s words to explain the origin, source, or reason for our weakness and struggle.

“And if men come unto me I will show unto them their weakness. I give unto men weakness that they may be humble; and my grace is sufficient for all men that humble themselves before me; for if they humble themselves before me, and have faith in me, then will I make weak things become strong unto them.”   -Ether 12:27

It is interesting to me that the Lord, in this scripture, teaches us that it is He himself that gives us our weaknesses. Our weaknesses and struggles are not heaped upon us by a malicious adversary. They are lovingly placed upon us by our Savior in order to mold us into what he wants us to become- humble and submissive. He wants us to depend on Him. And, if we do humble ourselves and have faith in him, our weaknesses not only vanish, but become strengths.

If the Savior is the one who places these weaknesses upon us, then He is certainly willing and capable of removing them. His master plan includes struggles, and burdens, and it always has. But, it is always for a wise purpose. It can bring us closer to Him.

“And I will also ease the burdens which are put upon your shoulders, that even you cannot feel them upon your backs, even while you are in bondage; and this will I do that ye may stand as witnesses for me hereafter, and that ye may know of a surety that I, the Lord God, do visit my people in their afflictions.”  Mosiah 24:14

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Losing is part of life. Struggling is part of life. But, we can’t get discouraged. We have to realize and recognize that those obstacles or weaknesses we struggle with are actually placed there by our loving Savior. We have to try and see these big obstacles in our way not as stumbling blocks to hamper our progress, but as stepping stones to promote it. 

The Divine Duality of Adversity

22 Sunday Nov 2015

Posted by in atonement, Faith, General, Opposition, Patience

≈ 1 Comment

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Sports can teach us almost anything. Growing up, I played baseball, basketball, football, golf, pickle ball, wiffle ball, and, everyone’s favorite 5th grade sport, butt ball. Each one of these sports taught me about how to work hard, practice, work as a team, and all of those happy feel good things that are common to sport analogies. But, it also taught me about the reality of loss, pain, sorrow, discouragement, and disappointment.

In today’s society, there seems to be a growing trend to try and shelter our kids from these realities. We give out trophies to all who participate, no one gets thrown out at first, no one loses, and no one wins. We do this to make sure that we don’t hurt anyone’s feelings. The problem with this thinking, is that it can create a false bubble of reality where nothing but contrived happiness and joy exists and never teaches the lessons of how to process the reality of losing, or the unavoidable disappointment that life will bring.

When we do this, we find ourselves just like the inside of Riley’s head in the movie, Inside Out, where “Joy” the happy emotion, tries to completely eliminate “Sadness” from ever having any kind of control over Riley’s emotions, she tries to protect Riley from ever feeling anything but joy. A great idea right? But, in the end, Joy realizes that sadness is not only acceptable, but an essential necessity to feel the complete fullness of joy. The contrast, or recovery from sadness, is what highlights true happiness in its fullness.

Some of us go through challenges that are nothing short of devastating. For some, the disappointment or sorrow hits hard as in when a child passes away. For others its watching a son or daughter lose their way. Some circumstances seem almost unbearable, with no hope for any good to come of them. What do we do then? How do we deal with devastation? We need help. We cannot do it alone. That is the whole point of passing through disappointment, and sorrow, or pain and suffering. We are supposed to learn from them.

These scenarios have played out since the beginning of time, and they will continue. Lets just look at a few examples of adversity and painful things happening, even to good and righteous people…

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Mormon was the prophet and military leader that knowingly watched as his entire people ignored his inspired pleas for repentance, and openly chose wickedness. These were his people, the very ones for which he was responsible. His teaching fell upon deaf and rebellious ears, and 230,000 of his men, the Nephites, were slaughtered in a single battle. They were completely wiped out by the Lamanites, because they chose wickedness. We can only imagine the disappointment and sorrow he felt. He wrote, “O ye fair ones, how could ye have departed from the ways of the Lord!..how could ye have rejected that Jesus who stood with open arms to receive you! How is it that ye could have fallen! But, Behold ye are gone, and my sorrows cannot bring your return.” (Mormon 6:16-19)

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Moroni, Mormon’s son, also witnessed this last great battle as a captain over 10,000 men. He then watched as the Lamanites killed his father, and turned after him. He then spent the remaining years of his life completely alone, running for his life.

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Ether, a Jaradite prophet, just like Mormon and Moroni, witnessed the entire wicked self destruction of his people when they refused to listen to his pleadings for their repentance. The great final battle claimed the lives of over 2 million men women and children. They not only rejected his teachings, but tried to kill him for doing so.

There are countless examples of devastating disappointments and sorrows. How did they deal with them? How did they continue to go forward while it seemed everything in the world was against them, even though they were doing what was right?

Think of it this way, what positives came of the examples of Mormon, Moroni, and Ether? What can we learn from them? Mormon, and Moroni both penned some of the most powerful chapters in the Book of Mormon, probably at the same time they were dealing with the destruction of their people. Moroni’s promise, that has led to the spiritual conversion of countless people, was written while completely alone, wandering in the wilderness. One of the best chapters in scripture on the principle of faith was written by the prophet Ether as he watched his people completely self destruct. Sometimes bad things do happen to good or great people, but sometimes great things come from it.

Part of life is understanding that we will have problems, that we will lose, we will be dealt a crap sandwich once in a while. But, what do we do with that crap sandwich? Do we bury our head in the sand and give up? Or, do we try to deal with it like the best chef’s on Chopped, and add bacon, chipotle peppers, and transform that crap sandwich into a chorizo preschutto, drizzled with a poblano pepper aoli?

The Lord told Joseph Smith while he was illegally imprisoned in the Liberty Jail, “that all these things shall give thee experience, and shall be for thy good.” (D&C 122:7)

The Lord also taught this when his disciples were feeling abandoned, lonely, helpless, and overwhelmed (and he will say the same to all of us), “I will not leave you comfortless, I will come unto you” (John 14:18) “Come unto me all ye that labor, and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yolk upon you, and learn of me;…. and ye shall find rest unto your souls.” (Matt 11:28,29)

When we turn to the Lord, our Elder Brother, He comforts us, He succors us, He changes us. As hard as it is, we need to try and see our lives as our Father in Heaven does. We need to try and see our disappointments and sorrows as opportunities to allow Jesus Christ to be the one who stands by our side to lift us up.

The ultimate lesson from our Father in Heaven is this, He wants us to grow, experience a full life. We really gain the experience He wants us to have when we pass through disappointment, and then use the gift of the Atonement of His Son to help us through the hard times. So, even though the sorrow is real, and the disappointment unbearably hard and devastating at times, these times are, in reality, opportunities to better know His Son. This is the divine duality of adversity. They are opportunities to open ourselves to the fullness of His Comforter. The contrast we then feel becomes the knowledge and experience our Father in Heaven needs us to understand. And maybe our experiences will benefit us in the future, or may benefit others who can learn from us.

Where can I turn for peace?
Where is my solace
When other sources cease to make me whole?
When with a wounded heart, anger, or malice,
I draw myself apart,
Searching my soul?

Where, when my aching grows,
Where, when I languish,
Where, in my need to know, where can I run?
Where is the quiet hand to calm my anguish,
Who, who can understand?
He, only One.

He answers privately,
Reaches my reaching
In my Gethsemane, Savior and Friend.
Gentle the peace here finds for my beseeching.
Constant he is and kind,
Love without end.

Hymn 129 Where can I turn for Peace?

Satisfaction

01 Thursday Oct 2015

Posted by in atonement, Fundamentals, Jesus Christ

≈ 2 Comments

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I have been at a conference in Milwaukee all week (for work).  This conference has a focus on education, and therefore offers classes, workshops, seminars, and hands-on activities in order to educate and inform all conference attendees catered to the particular industry in which I work.  Throughout each day, there are a wide range of topics and several options for classes that are offered in simultaneous timeslots, which means that the conference attendees can choose 1 of 8 classes for each time slot that classes are offered.  Towards the end of the week – today in fact – I was on the schedule to deliver a presentation.  In this presentation, I was to speak for an entire hour regarding how the use of technology could be helpful in the management of PSM.  To most of you, this seems like the most boring topic ever (or completely irrelevant to life in general), and you’re probably right.  As I have chronicled on this blog before (here), my company offers a software product to help in an area where most people want to ignore, which means that not very many people want help at all, let alone look for it.  So, imagine with me my ever-growing unease with this prospect of giving an hour-long presentation to 80 empty chairs.

As time went on, and this assignment weighed in my mind, I became ever more pessimistic and anxious about it.  Four months ago, I envisioned the room packed full of people (standing room only) chomping at the bit to devour our product with eager haste and begging me to continue despite the time restrictions leaving all other classrooms and speakers with emptiness.  One month ago, I envisioned the room mostly full of attendees taking notes and at least nodding their heads with interest.  Two weeks ago, I envisioned around 40 people there, but then as this week started, I started to reduce my hopes that maybe 10 people would be present.  Until finally, as I spoke with my wonderful wife last night and early this morning, I wondered if even a single person would attend my presentation.  With this dreadful thought in my mind at 2:50 PM, I started the 5-minute walk from our booth (we are also an exhibitor at this conference) to room 103C, and during that time I gave myself the following pep talk.  “Tyson, it is probable that not a single person will be in that room where you are scheduled to speak for an hour, and that’s ok. If that is the case and that room is completely empty, those chairs are going to learn how technology and a centralized system can help their management of PSM.”  I steadied myself and rounded the corner to where there was a sign with my speaking topic, our company logo, and I braced myself for the worst….and then I saw people.

People were there waiting!  People were in their seats before I even got there.  People had read the conference agenda, perused the available topics, and they had (of their own free will and choice) selected my presentation to attend.  How could this be?  I was immediately satisfied.  What’s more, the 3 individuals that I had personally invited to my presentation were all present – satisfied again. Then, as I set up for my presentation, I watched with further satisfaction, as additional people trickled in and sat down.  In the end (as I started my presentation) I estimated that there were between 25 and 30 people who gave their attention to me.1   With this boost in my self confidence and this feeling of satisfaction, I was strengthened and went on to deliver the most amazing PSM related technology presentation that the 3:00 PM time slot of the 2015 RETA conference will ever see.

Which, interestingly enough, brings me to a scripture passage that I have read several times and have recently been thinking about – related to satisfaction.  It is part of Abinidi’s message to king Noah and his wicked priests.  For a quick background,2 the people had captured and imprisoned Abinidi for preaching against them and their leadership and in a deliberate attempt “to cross him, that thereby they might have wherewith to accuse him” he was brought before king Noah and his priests where they began to question him.   As Abinidi withstood all of their words, and continued his detailed outlining of their wickedness in a frank and matter-of-fact way, the bad guys got angrier.  This led to them attempting to “lay their hands on him” and take him away, but he wasn’t finished with his message.  He “said unto them: Touch me not, for God shall smite you if ye lay your hands upon me, for I have not delivered the message which the Lord sent me to deliver.”  Then, Abinidi’s “face shone with exceeding luster”, and “he spake with power and authority from God.”  It is during this powerful and authoritative luster faced message that I quote Abinidi:

“When his soul has been made an offering for sin [speaking of Christ’s suffering during the grueling and agonizing atonement hours] he shall see his seed.”3 “He shall see the travail of his soul, and shall be satisfied.”4

I don’t have a good personal example to relate to that concept, but the closest thing I can relate is a mother experiencing intense labor that gets to hear her precious newborn baby cry for the very first time.  She is (and has been for several months) in the midst of a grueling and agonizing life creating pregnancy and painful delivery, which can absolutely be termed a “travail”, and all at once – in an instant even – is satisfied when that crying baby is placed in her arms and is therefore willing and able to continue on with the labor process, and indeed discount the months of pain as a satisfactory tradeoff for joy.  I have seen the pain and anguish of difficult labor displaced immediately by tears of joy on my wife’s face (more than once).  I can’t understand how it feels – yet somehow I can understand why it feels.

With that tender concept of satisfaction during our Lord’s anguishing travail in mind, I would like to add to our understanding of the passage delivered by Abinidi (and Isaiah) in his moments of shining glory with a verse recorded by Luke (referencing the exact same tender, crucial, amazing, grueling moment of travail). It is found in Luke 22:43 which reads “And there appeared an angel unto him from heaven, strengthening him.”

Could it be that this angel which appeared to the savior in the garden during his most pressing and agonizing hours – to strengthen him – somehow made it possible for the Lord to “see his seed” and “see the travail of his soul”, and therefore “be satisfied”?  Could it be that the strengthening agent that the Lord needed during his intense suffering was to hear the crying voice of a newborn baby like you and me?  Could it be that all in an instant, that anguish and hurt brought upon him by the pain and weight of the world (a necessary part of the life giving process) was immediately swept away by the visual image of his children that he loved so much?  I think so.  I think that gave him strength, just like it gave my wife strength, and just like it gives so many others strength.  That is the power of families, and that is the power of relationships, and that is the power of love and that is the power of life.  That idea could also be strengthened by the scriptural phrases of “perfect love casteth out all fear” (Moroni 8:16)

Now, I am not one to compare a lowly trade show presentation to the precious hours of the atonement, or even the childbearing process which both give life to the world, yet I did feel satisfaction in seeing a few bodies in the chairs that was equal to my anxiety – and therefore satisfied my heart.  Imagine then, the amount of joy and love that our savior feels with each of us – if the sound of our voice or the image of our faces in his mind allowed him to be satisfied in the most grueling moment imaginable during those garden hours.  Satisfaction equal to his anxiety, or as Alma put it “nothing so exquisite and so bitter as were [his] pains… that on the other hand, there can be nothing so exquisite and sweet as was [his] joy.”5

The Savior loves us deeply, more deeply than we can understand.  Let us all try and feel that love by allowing his sacrifice to be felt more deeply in our hearts.

Notes

1 For reference, I have presented a similar topic at a similar (much larger) conference once before (by invitation even) and the number of attendees was in the single digits (like 6 or 7), which no doubt led to my trepidation, but that’s just a side note for context.

2 This background can be read in Mosiah chapters 12 and 13

3 Mosiah 15:10 (please note this is the reference from footnote b in Mosiah 14:10, where Abinidi is quoting Isaiah.  These verses are nearly identical.  Also, please note that Abinidi also asks and answers the question: who is ‘his seed’? in the natural flow of this same amazing discourse (see Mosiah 15:10-13).  See also Mosiah 5:7.

4 Mosiah 14:11

5 Alma 36:21